


Nothing I would rather do

by RhinoHill



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: #vss365, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Love, Prompt Fic, Stargazing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-09
Updated: 2019-06-09
Packaged: 2020-04-23 01:52:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19141198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RhinoHill/pseuds/RhinoHill
Summary: Jack leaned onto his left elbow so that he could see her better. Having her next to him was the best addition to stargazing he could think of. “So, not plotting to blow any of them up?”She caught on to the playfulness in his tone. “Well, sir, I never really stop plotting that. Blowing stuff up is pretty addictive.” At his broadening smile, she glanced back at the sky. “But that requires going back to the lab. And tonight, I can’t think of anything I’d rather do than lie here and watch the sky.”Her closeness made him reckless. He leaned in, raised a cocky eyebrow and whispered: “Nothing? Really?”





	Nothing I would rather do

**Author's Note:**

> The first part - Sam - was written for the June 8 #vss365 prompt #smoke.
> 
> This is probably the farthest I've strayed from canon. But everyone deserves a gratuitous bit of happiness on a sunny Saturday in June. Even Sam and Jack.
> 
> xo

_Sam_

Day is fading into black.  
Stars, the teenage girls of night, twirl shyly into view until the dark is filled with twinkled laughter.  
The fire wafts sultry smoke signals at the moon.

And tonight  
There’s nothing I would rather do  
Than watch the sky with you.

—oOo—

They were lying on the lawn outside his house, heads pillowed on their hands, as the first star appeared. And then another. And another.

Behind them, the barbecue smoked feebly, dousing them in the scent of sausages and steaks when the wind shifted direction. It had been years since he’d felt so content.

Daniel and Teal’c had left an hour ago to catch a game on television, and for the first time in the four years he had known her, she had stayed. No explanation, no excuse, she’d simply waved them goodbye and carried an empty salad bowl to the kitchen. By the time he’d seen them off, she was lying on her back on the lawn as the sun sank towards the horizon.

Jack’s breath had caught in his throat. Not a week before, he had seen her in another sunset. Every time, she seemed to get more beautiful. Moving on silent feet, he changed direction towards the kitchen to get them both another beer. Another hour of her company. When he’d handed it to her before sitting down next to her with his own, she’d simply smiled a gentle thanks and taken a long pull.

They watched the sun disappear in companionable silence.

“So,” he turned to her as the sky smudged gold and pink above the echo of the burning disk, “who has the better sunset? Us, or P3x765?”

Her low, happy chuckle exploded warmth around his heart. “They both have quite a lot going for them, I would say. I may need to study a few more to avoid drawing the wrong conclusion.”

“With beer, I hope. You know, to keep the experimental conditions the same.”

That low chuckle rose again, and she looked across at him, nodding. “Beer helps.”

This was a different Carter to the one he’d known before the Za’tarc test. At work she was the same as ever, but when they were alone she slowed down, smiled, and watched the sunset. As if saying how they both felt had given her some peace. As the light faded and the first star appeared, he sighed and lay back, scooting closer to her, close enough to feel the heat radiating from her arm next to his.

For several minutes, they were silent. Then he spoke again. “You’ve got a look on your face like you’re plotting to blow up a sun. Should I be worried?”

“Do I really?” She turned her head on her hands to look at him.

“Uh, yah. So how worried should I be?”

That slow smile rose as she shook her head and turned back to the stars. “I was just thinking it’s nice that we’ve visited some of those solar systems.” She shrugged. “It adds something to stargazing.”

Jack leaned onto his left elbow so that he could see her better. Having her next to him was the best addition to stargazing he could think of. “So, not plotting to blow any of them up?”

She caught on to the playfulness in his tone. “Well, sir, I never really stop plotting that. Blowing stuff up is pretty addictive.” At his broadening smile, she glanced back at the sky. “But that requires going back to the lab. And tonight, I can’t think of anything I’d rather do than lie here and watch the sky.”

Her closeness made him reckless. He leaned in, raised a cocky eyebrow and whispered: “Nothing? Really?”

It was a bridge too far. He saw it in the way her mouth twisted with regret, the tightening behind her eyes, the sudden sharp sadness that flashed at him when she turned away and sat up.

“I’m sorry,” he sighed.

She shook her head. “I should go. This… this is not a good idea.”

“Shit, Carter, wait.” He grabbed her hand and held her back. “I’m sorry. I say stupid, pointless things. Please. Don’t go.”

The eyes that turned to face him in the growing night were dark and pained. “You know the things you say aren’t stupid,” she whispered. But she stayed. Tense, wary. But not pulling her hand out of his grasp.

He licked his lips, forcing himself to think beyond the need to hold her. “Okay. How about we travel to another planet tonight? One the SGC doesn’t even know exists?”

“How?” His heart unclenched as he saw her wariness fight with her interest in his words.

“Using our own, personal stargate, of course!” With a wink and a flourish he hadn’t used on anyone other than Charlie, he pulled a square of nothingness out of his right trouser pocket and unfurled it in the air.

Both her eyebrows rose, but she kept watching.

“Alright, do you have the co-ordinates set? Let’s get going!” He lay back down again, keeping his hand tightly wrapped around hers. She didn’t move. Jack closed his eyes in a silent prayer. “Chevron one, encoded!” he barked in a voice so similar to Walter’s that she coughed a startled giggle. “Chevron two, encoded!” He watched with a lifting heart as she turned to him and smiled. “Chevron three, encoded!” Walter’s clipped tenor was starting to sound silly to him now, but with every passing chevron, she pulled closer to him. “Chevron four, encoded!” She lay back on the grass again. “Chevron five, encoded!” Her right arm moved a fraction, the back of her forearm coming to rest against the skin of his own. Jack swallowed. “Chevron six, encoded!” She turned her head to face him, a dimple tugging into her cheek. “Chevron seven, locked!” she mouthed the words along with Walter’s triumphant tone, the one they knew so well.

Jack turned and smiled at her, love in his eyes. For a moment, all he could do was take in her skin in the moonlight. When he spoke, his voice was husky. “Welcome to our planet, Major. Renowned for its sunsets, I have heard. You see, it has twenty four suns. It’s true. So there’s always a sunset happening somewhere.” He paused. Her eyes traced the lines of his face, from his lips to his eyes and back again. His heart started a drum solo in his chest. “So, where do you want to start exploring?”

She leaned up with an expression so timid and vulnerable that his fingers tightened around her hand for comfort. Softly, hesitantly, she touched her lips to his. Her breath against his skin raised goosebumps on his neck. He parted his lips and her tongue teased their edges, trailing along the tips of his teeth until he groaned and pulled her into him, tangling his fingers in her hair, crushing her body to his, drinking in her tongue, her lips, her mouth. By the time she pulled up for air, everything had changed, and nothing mattered more than holding her.

He ran a finger along the curve of her chin. “Good choice,” he whispered.

“Good choice?” Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes confused.

“Hmmm.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and smiled when it flopped straight out again. He twisted it slowly around his finger. “That many suns could give you serious sunburn. Much safer down here with me.”

Her forehead dropped to his shoulder and she shook with laughter. Jack pulled her closer into his arms, wanting to recall every curve and angle of her body.

“Sam.” Her name felt like a prayer on his tongue. “Sam, whatever happens, I love you.”


End file.
